Bikin National Park
The national park was created in 2015, the main goal is to preserve the local forests from deforestation. The land in the river valley is divided into ancestral areas where the Udeges can engage in traditional crafts: hunting and fishing. Only with the permission of the owner of the birth plot, guests can enter its territory. Tourists are not allowed to hunt in the park, only fishing is possible.
The nearest large village - Krasny Yar - is two hours down the river from the cordon to the Bikin National Park. Before the formation of the national park, the village was away from what is called “modern infrastructure”. But since then, the village has been very transformed: a hospital, a police station, a post office, a kindergarten, a library and a bakery were built here. All buildings are modern, “with conveniences”, made of glued timber. There is a chess club in the library. The Udeges of Red Yar are recognized chess players. No wonder for two years in a row there are competitions for the Cup of Primorsky Krai. Bread from the local bakery is delivered throughout Primorye: it is so scented and light.
Here, in the heart of the village, there is a park visit center. To spend a few days on the territory of Udege residents without the help of employees of the national park, tourists will not succeed. Therefore, such a trip should be planned in advance, apply for all visitors, pay for accompanying services and accommodation on the cordon. Also, the staff of the visit center will help prepare for the trip: they will give recommendations on clothing, food and accommodation.
The Bikin River, one of the largest tributaries of Ussuri, is included in the World List of UNESCO Sites. The width of the river reaches 40 meters, and its flow is quite stormy, especially on rainy days. In order to get to the ancestral plots or to the spit for fishing, the Udeges use boats, which are called here the ulimagda. Vladimir Klavdievich Arsenyev traveled on similar, only without modern engines.
In the valley of the Bikin River there is a unique nature. The forest here is mixed, side by side can grow cedar and liana. Here you can find relict plants. For example, Amur velvet or cork tree, liana actinidia, which gives fruit in the form of small kiwis, here they are called kishmish. Grow in the park and red book plants, for example, ginseng. Park rangers carefully protect wildflowers and know where everyone grows
> A large population of the Amur tiger lives on the territory of the park - 10% of the total number in the world. Tiger hunting is forbidden even to Udeges. You can't kill a tiger. Taking prey from the owner of the taiga is a sin. The Udegeans rarely call the tiger Amba. The most read of them are sure that V.K. Arseniev misinterpreted the words of his companion Dersu, because Amba is an evil spirit. Legends say that the Evil Spirit can appear before a person in the form of a bird (amba gahani), a person (amba niyi) or an animal (amba buani). He can be a tiger, too. But the tiger, according to the Udegeans, is not Amba. They call it Cuti.
The Department for Tourism Development of the Bikin National Park has developed several routes of different duration. Overnights on the route are allowed only at tourist camps, which are organized on the territory of some birth plots. In addition, you can spend several nights in the village of Krasny Yar and get acquainted with the culture of indigenous peoples: try the local cuisine, live in a family and visit a shaman. Now on the Yar one shaman - Vasily Dunkai. He often visits his hunting lot, works, sometimes travels around the country, and also conducts ceremonies at national Udege holidays, which are becoming more popular from year to year thanks to the Bikin National Park, which revived traditional festivities, dressed them in festival uniforms and made them real ethnic, environmental events.
Through the efforts of the park, a national choir has been created, which performs several songs in the Udege language. Udege women in the “Craftsman’s House” – a folk crafts workshop of the Bikin National Park – sew costumes, make souvenirs, this is a skillful and painstaking work. All Udegei clothes are sheathed with patterns-symbols. In the past, clothes with their traditional embroidery served as a kind of “passport”. By jewelry, it was possible to determine not only nationality, but also belonging to a particular genus. The old-timers still have costumes sewn by the grandmothers of the current Udege, but these are family heirlooms. You can even try on “Park” national clothes. There is a special wardrobe in the visit center.
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